Long Live the King
by Gundam Kaiser
Summary: Arturia has been sent back to her original life, but the rules are radically different from what she remembers.
1. Chapter 0: Break the Chains of Fate!

Long Live the King

**A ballad of swords and souls, sung throughout time. A woman whose honor, courage, and compassion transcend even Fate itself. History repeats and, in doing so, is distorted. Let those who seek a hero rejoice. Long Live the King.**

**Prologue: Break the Chains of Fate!**

* * *

The Fifth Grail War had been a long battle. Less savage and destructive than the Fourth, but still... special. Unique. A lesser, more profane woman than Arturia might've even called it a clusterfuck.

But at last, it was all but over. Just one final target.

She was exhausted from her savage battle with Gilgamesh, but the King of Knights had power enough for one last attack.

"EEEEX-"

Bringing down the Sword of Promised Victory with all her might, Arturia Pendragon screamed.

"CALIBUUUUUUUR!"

A storm of golden light erupts from the fey blade, and the corrupt... _thing_ before her is wiped from existence.

_I suppose it's ironic_, she thought, _that twice I've fought a war for this Grail, and twice I've destroyed it._

She turned, then, to her Master. The man who, despite herself, she'd grown to care for. _No_, she corrected herself, _the man I've come to love._ Shirou Emiya.

They'd only been together for a couple of weeks, and now they would part - without the Grail, her existence in the present as a Servant would end, and she would return to the past and die at Camlann.

_After I failed my beloved country, even this much is more than I deserve_.

As she faded into light, she recalled how Shirou had gone out of his way to interact with her at every opportunity, refusing to treat her as anything but his equal. As she took a moment to compare father and son, she mused, _If Kiritsugu had told me about the corruption in the Grail ten years ago, I probably would've chosen to destroy it then. Indeed, had we spoken our thoughts to each other at all, we might've won the Fourth War with minimal effort and collateral damage._

She then recalled how nearly every Servant had been a match for its Master, but the King of Knights had never been able to figure out the commonality between herself and Kiritsugu, assuming that Avalon was the only reason he'd been able to summon her.

And that was when it struck her - they had both completely failed to communicate their ideals to others, and had suffered for it. Arturia Pendragon, as the King of Britain, had held herself away and apart from her subjects, believing that a King could not be a person, had to be an existence beyond those she ruled. And as a Servant, knowing that in the best case scenario she'd die after the current war, she'd wished to be treated as a weapon instead of a person.

And Kiritsugu Emiya had, now that she reflected on it, given her exactly what she wanted. She didn't speak to her sword, after all. And her previous Master had explicitly considered her as only a weapon like any other.

In her life, and in the Fourth War, she had wished to be treated as an inhuman existence, and each time she suffered for it.

For just a moment, the King of Knights allowed herself to wonder what might have been. _If I understood then what I've learned since... that I can be a King or a weapon and yet still retain my humanity..._

She had, by this point, completely faded into light. In the void of time en route to her proper body, content to die... all hell broke loose.

For one instant, she felt herself one with all of time and space. The universe heaved, and earth and heaven imploded.

After the cosmic fireworks died down, the blonde found herself on a platform of stained glass, surrounded by a pitch-black void. Looking beneath her, on the platform, she observed three different portraits. They were of herself, and herself, and herself.

King Arthur, the steel-eyed monarch who sealed her heart beyond anyone's reach; Saber, the stoic sword that smote evil; and Arturia, the little girl abandoned and alone, suffering in silence.

Despite seeing only darkness around her, there was a source of light somewhere, as she could see herself and the platform perfectly well - further evidenced by the presence of her shadow.

At that moment, however, the petite swordsmaster's eyes widened as her shadow began to rise from the surface, taking on a three-dimensional form until it had become a twisted reflection of herself in black armor; her eyes shone an unholy gold, her skin was unnaturally pale, and her hair was much less vibrant. In her dominant hand was a corrupt parody of Invisible Air - extending from the pommel of the sword was only a flickering shadow.

On edge, Arturia asked, "Just what are you, creature?"

It was in a complete monotone that the shadow replied, "I am self-righteous arrogance to those beneath me. I am wretched self-pity in the face of those above me. I am Alter, and I am... not enough."

Despite being utterly emotionless, it seemed bitter as it whispered, "_I am never enough_."

Without further preamble, Alter rushed at Arturia, each attack an attempted killing stroke. The King of Knights was saved at first by her well-honed instincts, but the exhaustion and injuries from fighting Gilgamesh had not yet healed, and even besides that, Arturia felt strangely... empty on the inside.

Even as she fought for her life, she wondered why she was fighting when she was going to die after this... whatever the hell was going on... subsided anyway. _Is it because I want to live now that I've known happiness?_ she wondered.

As the apparent twins clashed, Arturia found scenes from her life rising to the forefront of her mind, unbidden.

Drawing Caliburn from the stone, declaring herself to be the King.

Turning her sword on Lancelot and Guinevere and condemning them to death as adulterers and traitors despite her own feelings, as her own laws demanded.

Destroying the Holy Grail she'd fought so hard for _twice_; once under compulsion, and once by force.

Falling in love with Shirou Emiya, despite harboring utter hatred for his father up until the end of the Fifth War.

_I've made so many choices, haven't I? And though I now regret some of the things I've done and said, they're all my responsibility._

Alter said, "Give up and save yourself some trouble. As a King, you are without army or Kingdom. As a sword, you are broken. As a woman, you are loved only by a fool with no identity of his own. Just who are you, then, that you fight so hard for a life doomed to end, regardless of the battle's conclusion?"

Her strength fading, and too exhausted to use Mana Burst, Arturia matched Alter's apathy with a defiant scowl and countered, "And just who are _you_ to make light of King Arthur?!"

At that moment, the flickering shadow vanished, allowing Arturia to properly see Alter's ebon blade. After a second of surprise, Arturia found herself starting to grin. Even though she was weakening under the black swordmaster's assault, now that she could properly _see_ the enemy's blade, the azure knight could fight more efficiently and confidently. Now that she could accurately gauge the enemy weapon, she could begin a counterattack.

More memories flashed through Arturia's mind as she parried Alter's ebon blade and used her free hand to punch the shadow's face.

A neverending cycle of conflict, of taking and sacrificing lives in order to protect more lives. Losing battles to win wars.

Killing her own son Mordred, and being killed by him in return.

Battling Sasaki Kojiro on the steps of Ryudo temple.

Dueling Diarmuid at the docks.

Defeating Gilgamesh, the most powerful Heroic Spirit known to man.

_So many battles, and so little else... Is this what my life has added up to? Still, I must admit that whenever I faced an honorable opponent, I sort of enjoyed it._

Arturia blocked Alter's overhead slash, the two blades grinding against each other and shooting sparks. For several moments, the King of Knights felt herself being gradually forced downward. "Why do you fight, when your death is eminent? Here or at Camlann, it makes no difference."

Gritting her teeth, she growled, "Even if I am fated to die regardless of the battle's outcome, you will not defeat me. My pride as a warrior will not allow it!"

With renewed vigor and strength, she pushed with enough force to send Alter skidding across the platform, coming to a stop several yards away.

In the brief pause of the battle, Arturia noted that two of the portraits - the King and the Sword - had vanished.

Sensing Alter's renewed attack, Arturia parried her counterpart's sword with almost no effort compared to her earlier attempts. While the black knight was still physically stronger, the blue knight had greater speed and skill, easily evading Alter's blade and countering fast enough that Alter could barely protect herself.

Eventually, Alter unleashed a pulse of energy that knocked Arturia back a few feet. "It ends."

Alter rested the tip of her blade on the platform behind her, and then drug it forward with more force than she had yet exerted in a single attack, flinging a massive spike of dark energy aimed at Arturia's throat.

More memories flashed before Arturia's eyes.

A banquet with her Knights of the Round.

Her brash older brother, Kay, doting on her when she had been ill as a child.

Intimate moments with Shirou.

_I kept insisting on only being a King or a weapon, and yet even as the King, I was human all along, wasn't I?_

With a fierce shout, Arturia deflected Alter's spike before firmly planting her feet on the platform and raising her blade into the air.

"And a reckless fool Shirou may be," Arturia proudly declared, "but he's _my_ reckless fool! EEEEEEEX!"

The King of Knights stepped forward and unleashed her full power at point-blank range.

"CALIBUUUUUUUUUUR!"

A storm erupted from Arturia's blade, wearing down Alter's defense until she cried out in pain, being swept away in the maelstrom of golden light.

The final portrait was blank.

When Excalibur's light died down, Alter was forcing herself to one knee, gradually fading into particles of black dust.

As the realization of her opponent's identity and purpose dawned on her, the time-displaced Servant absently verbalized her thoughts. "I understand, now, why I was abandoned and betrayed by others - it was because I kept abandoning and betraying myself as well."

Alter's emotionless eyes seemed to be pleading as she said, "I... I don't want to be alone anymore."

Smiling warmly at the other self before her, Arturia said, "You won't. I swear it on my word as the King."

Alter's face finally took a proper expression; becoming much softer as she smiled, a single tear of relief running down her face. "The word of the King... huh? I'll hold you to that."

Alter faded back into a black silhouette before merging into Arturia.

The King of Knights promptly blacked out.

* * *

"ARTHUR! OI, ARTHUR!"

Arturia awoke in a straw bed dressed in a thin shirt and breeches to a familiar voice calling her.

"... Kay?"

The door to her room slammed open, and her boisterous older brother stood in it. His grin nearly as big as he himself was, he said, "Get _up_, you lazy blackguard! Today begins the tournament!"

Still feeling mostly asleep, the crossdressed young lady groggily asked, "Tourna...ment?"

"What are you, still dreamin'? The tourney to choose the King of Britannia!"

* * *

**Having been returned to her past by unknown means, Arturia finds her wish has been granted after all. Will the woman whose honor surpasses time allow the reins of rule to be in another's hand? Or will she force Fate to follow her own designs and become the King she felt Britain deserves?**

**Find out next time on Episode 2: BORN! Our King of Knights!**

**LONG LIVE THE KING!**


	2. Chapter 1: BORN! ! Our King of Knights!

Long Live the King

**A ballad of swords and souls, sung throughout time. A woman whose courage transcends even Fate itself. History repeats and, in doing so, is distorted. Let those who seek a hero rejoice. Long Live the King.**

_**Having been returned to her past by unknown means, Arturia finds her wish has been granted after all. Will the woman whose honor surpasses time allow the reins of rule to be in another's hand? Or will she force Fate to follow her own designs and become the King she felt Britain deserves?**_

**BORN! Our King of Knights!**

* * *

"ARTHUR! OI, ARTHUR!"

Arturia awoke in a straw bed dressed in a thin shirt and breeches to a familiar voice calling her.

"... Kay?"

The door to her room slammed open, and her boisterous older brother stood in it. His grin nearly as big as he himself was, he said, "Get _up_, you lazy blackguard! Today begins the tournament!"

Still feeling mostly asleep, the crossdressed young lady groggily asked, "Tourna...ment?"

"What are you, still dreamin'? The tourney to choose the King of Britannia!"

Adorably wiping the sleep out of her eyes, Arturia blankly mumbled, "There _was_ a tourney today, wasn't there...?"

Despite clearly remembering the act of drawing the sword from the stone, Arturia had otherwise mostly forgotten the events of the day.

Lightly smacking her head and elicting a small _ow_ - albeit more of surprise than of pain - Kay gruffly muttered, "You still half-asleep? We'll see about _that_ now, won't we?"

With that, he grabbed Arturia by the leg and roughly yanked her out of bed, and let her fall to the cold stone floor with an undignified yelp.

Rubbing the sore spot where head hit floor, Arturia glared up at her snickering foster brother.

_I had long forgotten, big brother, your capacity for teasing me._

"That was mean, Kay."

Dramatically rolling his eyes, Kay remarked, "A proper man would've awakened fully when he recalled the tournament."

Failing to prevent her eye from twitching at her beloved (and yet aggravating as hell) testosterone-fueled brother, Arturia grumbled incoherently as she rose to her feet.

First, breakfast. And then she'd have to help Kay get into his armor, and then properly decide what she was going to do if Caliburn appeared.

On the one hand, she still wasn't entirely confident that - even with her new knowledge, experience, and outlook - she'd be the king she thought Britain deserved.

_And yet on the other hand,_ she mused, _I could hardly do worse now than I did before._

Oblivious to the thoughts whirling through his young sister's mind, Kay muttered, "Now to find my mace for the melee..."

Arturia froze in her tracks. _A melee? I don't remember any melee, merely a jousting tournament._

"A melee, big brother?"

Kay turned to give her a level stare. "Yeah, a melee. Y'know, a bunch of guys decked out in armor try to beat each other senseless and the last man standing wins? 'Course, it's not a war, so anyone who kills gets disqualified, hence the use of impact weapons rather than blades."

Seeing that she was still confused, Kay examined Arturia closely.

"W-what?"

"You weren't supposed to have hit your head _that_ hard, kiddo."

_I had also forgotten how perceptive you can be at times._

Blushing severely, she said, "I-I-I just dreamed that it was a jousting tourney and was expecting that, is all!"

Kay continued staring at her for a few seconds before he shrugged and mumbled under his breath, "Girls..."

_Wait, he knows I'm a woman? ... Obviously, more than just the form of the tourney has changed from what I recall..._

Arturia shrugged it off. She wouldn't be allowed to participate in the melee on account of her age, but if Caliburn appeared in the stone again, that part wouldn't matter. Someone would jokingly propose that the scrawny Arthur give the sword a tug...

* * *

A few hours later, the pair had arrived at a massive field. On the one side, was fifty armored knights wielding various sorts of bludgeons. Arturia noted that Kay in particular held a rather impressive-sized hammer nearly as big as he was. Apparently, he'd chosen not to go with the mace after all.

On the other side was fifty more knights.

The assembled knights represented either themselves or the nobleman of the city or kingdom they came from.

Upon a certain signal, the two sides would charge at each other, and every knight would try to pummel every other knight into unconsciousness, with the winner being proclaimed High King - or the noble they represented being proclaimed High King, depending on the knight in question.

Since the late King Uther didn't have an heir - that the public knew about - this was the current system used to select the next ruling family.

Off to the side, a fire was lit. As pitch black smoke billowed into the air, the mock armies charged, soldiers on either side roaring their battle cries.

No sooner than half the distance had been covered, however, than the sky instantly went dark and a bolt of lightning struck the center of the field.

And then, a second later, another bolt, and another, striking in _exactly_ the same place, until it was practically a solid column of electricity.

Naturally, the supernatural spectacle stopped each legion short, and several seconds after, the cacophanous sound of the sky being split open finally ceased.

Where the lightning had struck, there was now a stone pedastal, and a sword plunged into it.

Arturia thought to herself, _Something is definitely wrong here; nothing was ever so... pointlessly dramatic in my original lifetime._

The assembled Knights and nobles were called together into one group, and someone would be chosen to read the plaque upon the stone. Of course, anyone could read it for themselves, but it was the principle of the thing to have a specific person dedicated for it.

Kay got the honor, since he was renowned for his ability to make himself heard over a considerable distance.

Raising his voice even louder than usual, Sir Kay boomed, "Let the one who can draw this golden sword of assured victory named Caliburn from the stone be renowned across the land as High King of all British Isles, cast in the name of God. May all those guilty of rebellion be cut down where they stand."

Eyes widening, Arturia muttered, "That is definitely _not_ what I recall it saying. What's going on here?"

Over the next few hours, everyone present made an attempt at drawing Caliburn, but none could do it.

Eventually, Kay was the only Knight remaining who hadn't. Laughing like a fool, he made a show of arrogantly boasting. "Weaklings, one and all of you! So weak you can't even lift a blade from a rock? I! SIR KAY! WILL DRAW! THIS! BLADE!"

With this declaration, he wrapped his powerful hands around Caliburn's handle, making sure to get a good grip on it, and heaved.

The sword did not budge in the slightest, and neither did Kay's resolve.

The stone did not relinquish its grip on Caliburn, nor did Kay himself.

Eventually, everyone began to see a result. Namely, that the _stone itself_ had moved; Kay managed to bring the massive slab of rock nearly to his knees before his strength gave out and the thing dropped with a meaty **whomp**.

Panting from the effort, Kay paused for several seconds. "... I still did better than any of _you_ louts."

Then, looking directly at Arturia, he challenged, "Why not let yon squire have a go at it, while we're here?"

Several of the other assembled knights rolled their eyes and chuckled. "Yeah, sure, why not?" one of them said.

This was it.

One moment in time, where Arturia had the chance to either accept or reject her destiny. A lifetime ago, she had taken up that sword without a second thought.

Figuring that Kay or someone else would simply egg her on to try anyway - call her a coward, question her masculinity, that sort of thing - Arturia smiled and shook her head. "No thank you, sir."

At that moment, time completely froze except for Arturia. The wind stopped - it didn't die, it _stopped_ - the trees and the grass were still bent.

The people did not react.

It was if the universe were a video and God had hit the 'pause' button on His remote control.

Arturia alone was not frozen in spacetime.

And then, right before her eyes, reality came to an end. The sky spiderwebbed like a broken window, before exploding into countless pieces, allowing Arturia to see the black of space in all directions, yet the light on Earth still indicated that it was day and not night.

Various points that Arturia could see suddenly became distorted, overlapping or over_writing_ nearby areas, the moon in the sky collapsed into a single point too small for observations, and Earth itself rocketed into the sun as it went nova...

* * *

**Next time on Long Live the King!**

_**"You broke all of time and space. I have every right to be cross with you."**_

_**"Gods, you're more stubborn and stupid than I ever was!"**_

_**"The world is a very tsundere place."**_

**Episode 3: Destroy Everything! Connect Everything!**

**Now then, a few explanations might be in order.**

**If you **_**want **_**them, however, you'll just have to ask for them in a review.**

**LONG LIVE THE KING!**


End file.
